Okaloosa County BOCC — May 17, 2016 — 2016 Emergency Solutions Grant App — reading text

Department of Children and Families Office on Homelessness 2016 Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Grant Application Grant Application # LPZ19 All applications must be received by the Office on Homelessness at: 1317 Winewood Boulevard Building 3, Room 201 Tallahassee, FL 32399-0700 Before 3:00 p.m. on May 25, 2016  TABLE OF CONTENTS I. GRANT OVERVIEW 3 A. Eligible Applicants 3 II. SCOPE OF WORK 4 A. Eligible Activities 4 B. Eligible Clients 7 III. FUNDING ALLOCATIONS 7 A. Funding Priorities 8 IV. MATCH REQUIREMENT 8 A. Additional Federal Requirements 9 V. GRANT SOLICITATION PROCESS 10 VI. APPLICATION REVIEWS AND EVALUATIONS 14 A. Completeness Check 14 B. Format and Content of Application 14 C. Application Scoring 17 VII. EXHIBITS 17 2. Applicant Information Request 23 3. Completeness Check 25 4. Lead Agency Profile 26 4. Proposed Activities 28 8. Continuum of Care Certification 39 9. Budget and Match Forms 42 10. Local Government Certification 45 11. Certification Regarding Lobbying 46 12. Written Standards Guidelines 48 13. HUD Homeless Definitions 49 14. Formula Jurisdiction Exceptions 51 15. Lead Based Paint Requirements 53 16. ESG Program Components Quick Reference 54 2016-17 Emergency Solutions Grant Application 2  I. GRANT OVERVIEW The Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Program is a federally funded program awarded to the State of Florida through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The State of Florida is required to distribute the grant for projects operated by local government agencies or private non-profit organizations. The ESG program is designed as the first step in a continuum of assistance that addresses homelessness and enables the homeless population to move steadily toward independent living. The Continuum of Care (CoC) model is based on the understanding that homelessness is not caused simply by a lack of shelter, but is caused by a variety of underlying human and social conditions. HUD believes the best approach for alleviating homelessness is to establish a community-based process that provides a comprehensive response to the diverse needs of homeless persons. The fundamental components of a CoC system are: 1) Outreach and assessment to identify a homeless person's needs; 2) Immediate (emergency) shelter as a safe, decent alternative to the streets; 3) Transitional housing with appropriate supportive services to help people achieve independent living; and 4) Permanent housing or permanent supportive housing for the disabled homeless. The ESG program provides funding to: (1) engage homeless individuals and families living on the street; (2) improve the number and quality of emergency shelters for homeless individuals and families; (3) help operate these shelters; (4) provide essential services to shelter residents, (5) rapidly re-house homeless individuals and families, and (6) prevent families/individuals from becoming homeless. A. Eligible Applicants The only entities that may submit an application for the Emergency Solutions Grant shall be the lead agencies of the CoC, as designated pursuant to section 420.624(6), Florida Statutes, by the Office on Homelessness (Office) for specified catchment areas within the state. The designation of the lead agencies by the Office has been done in consultation with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the local homeless coalitions within Florida, and those agencies that were identified as the lead agency in the most recent application for HUD homeless grants. The list of designated lead agencies by catchment area is attached in EXHIBIT 1. Any applications received from other entities not on the list of designated lead agencies shall be returned, without review, to the entity that submitted it. Lead agencies are required to register in MyFloridaMarketPlace (MFMP) as a vendor. Registration is required because the Department of Financial Services uses data from MFMP to establish the payment data file for purposes of disbursing state funds. Funds disbursed to lead agencies as a result of these grants are financial assistance. In accordance with rule 60A-1.032(l)(i)1, F.A.C., disbursements of financial assistance to recipients of state financial assistance are exempt from paying the MFMP transaction fee. 2016-17 Emergency Solutions Grant Application 3 The grant application to administer the Emergency Solution Grant (ESG) Program is authorized by section 420.624(2), Florida Statutes. To qualify for the grant, a lead agency must develop and implement a local homeless assistance CoC plan for its designated planning area. The CoC plan must implement a coordinated assessment or central intake system to screen, assess, and refer persons seeking assistance to the appropriate service provider. The lead agencies may allocate grant funds to programs, services, or housing providers that support the implementation of the local CoC plan. This grant solicitation describes the Department's instructions that govern the grant application process, including the scoring process for applications in accordance with the statutory preference criteria stated in section 420.622(4), Florida Statutes. All applicants must complete the completeness checklist (Appendix B) and all required forms on the checklist to be considered. II. SCOPE OF WORK The ESG Program will fund activities that meet the definitions contained in the HUD regulations published in 24 C.F.R. § 576, as amended. Applicants are directed to review the definitions of homeless and at risk of homelessness in 24 C.F.R. § 576.2 (Exhibit 13). Under this grant application, funded components of the ESG Program are: Street Outreach, Emergency Shelter, Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing. Allowable costs associated with carrying out grant functions also include grant administrative costs (capped at 5%) and costs associated participation in and collected, entering and providing data in the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS). The lead agencies must ensure that written standards for each service component performed are completed in accordance with 24 C.F.R. § 576.400(e) (Exhibit 12) and approved by the Office on Homeless prior to grant execution. A. Eligible Activities (1) Street Outreach: Essential services to eligible participants provided on the street or in parks, abandoned buildings, bus stations, campgrounds, and in other such settings where unsheltered persons are staying. Staff salaries related to carrying out street outreach are also eligible. See 24 C.F.R. § 576.101 for complete list of eligible activities. Eligible Program Participants: Unsheltered individuals and families who qualify as homeless under Category one (1) and Category four (4) of HUD’s Definition of Homelessness. Allowable Activities: (See Exhibit 16) x Engagement – Activities to locate, identify, and build relationships with unsheltered homeless persons for the purpose of providing immediate support, intervention, and connections with homeless assistance programs and/or social services and housing programs. Eligible costs include: initial assessment of need and eligibility; providing 2016-17 Emergency Solutions Grant Application 4  crisis counseling; addressing urgent physical needs; and actively connecting and providing information and referral. Eligible costs also include the cell phone costs of outreach workers during the performance of these activities. x Case Management – Assessing housing and service needs, and coordinating the delivery of individualized services. Eligible costs include: using a Continuum of Care centralized or coordinated assessment system; initial evaluation including verifying and documenting eligibility; counseling; helping to obtain Federal, State and local benefits; providing information and referral to other providers; and developing an individualized housing/service plan. x Emergency Health Services – Outpatient treatment of urgent medical conditions by licensed medical professionals; and providing medication and follow-up services. x Emergency Mental Health Services – Outpatient treatment of urgent mental health conditions by licensed professionals; medication costs; and follow up services. x Transportation – Travel by outreach workers or other service providers during the provision of eligible outreach activities; costs of transportation of clients to emergency shelters or other service providers; and costs of public transportation for clients. x Services to Special Populations – Essential Services that have been tailored to address the needs of unaccompanied homeless youth, victims of domestic violence and related crimes/threats, or people living with HIV/AIDS who are literally homeless. (2) Emergency Shelter: Rehabilitation of an existing shelter or conversion of a building for the purposes of providing emergency shelter, essential services and operational expenses. See 24 C.F.R. § 576.102 for complete list of eligible activities. Eligible Participants: Individuals and families who qualify as homeless under Categories one (1) through four (4) of HUD’s Definition of Homelessness. Allowable Activities: (See Exhibit 16) x Renovation, major rehabilitation or conversion – Renovation means rehabilitation that involves costs of 75% or less of the value of the building before renovation. Major rehabilitation means rehabilitation that involves costs in excess of 75% of the value of the building before rehabilitation. Conversion means a change in the use of the building to an emergency shelter for the homeless, where the cost of conversion exceeds 75% of the value of the building after conversion. x Essential Services x Renovation (includes major rehab and conversion) x Shelter Operations x Assistance required under URA a. Assistance required under the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (URA). Eligible costs are the costs of providing URA assistance under §576.408, including relocation payments and other assistance to persons displaced by a project assisted with ESG funds. Persons that receive URA assistance are not considered “program participants” for the purposes of this part, and relocation payments and other URA assistance are not considered “rental assistance” or “housing relocation and stabilization services” for the purposes of this part. 2016-17 Emergency Solutions Grant Application 5 (3) Prevention